


A Hobbit's Measure

by swtalmnd



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies)
Genre: Body Positivity, Established Relationship, Everybody Lives, Fluff, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-01
Updated: 2017-08-01
Packaged: 2018-12-09 17:34:43
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,867
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11673855
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/swtalmnd/pseuds/swtalmnd
Summary: A little fic about appreciating the proper shape for a happy hobbit.





	A Hobbit's Measure

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to brookebond & isidore13 for the encouragement and kate_the_reader for the beta!

Bilbo sighed as he looked at himself in the mirror, his body round and hairy after months of good food, celebrations, and rest.

"What's that sigh for, my love?" asked Thorin, coming to wrap himself around his smaller lover.

"Just looking at myself now. I got so lean and wiry on our journeys," Bilbo replied, rubbing his chubby belly again.

"Now, Bilbo, you know that's not why I married you," said Thorin.

"What?" said Bilbo, confused. "No, I mean, I look like a proper hobbit now. Fat and happy as can be. I was practically a short elf for a while there."

Thorin laughed, warm and joyful, turning him around for a kiss and, not so incidentally, a double handful of Bilbo's now-plush bottom. "You're amazing, my little ingot."

Bilbo huffed and put his own arms up around Thorin's thick neck; the dwarf hadn't let himself get soft while they rebuilt, instead running forges and hewing stone and mock-battling with his nephews. "You're an idiot as always, but I still love you, so that makes two of us."

Thorin met his lips again, a smile interfering with the kiss for a moment before the kiss interfered with the smile instead. "Indeed it does," he agreed, giving Bilbo's bottom a proprietary squeeze. "Now, will you be dressing for breakfast, or joining us like this?"

Bilbo lingered over kisses long enough to make them both contemplate the wisdom of skipping breakfast, but then his round belly rumbled loud enough to be heard over his fast-beating heart and they both broke up into laughter. "Yes, all right, just let me see if I've got any waistcoats left that fit."

Thorin went to finish his own dressing, leaving Bilbo to contemplate the value of a good tailor in the middle of nowhere. There was at least one man among the humans that wouldn't try to put fur or metal or armour on everything, and he made a mental note to get some coin from Thorin to head down there after morning court.

A King's Consort had a lot of duties, but not looking like a child outgrowing his clothes wasn't so far down the list that he'd be chided for taking the time. He managed to cobble together a respectable enough outfit, anyway, and he was just settling the small circlet on his curls when Thorin returned bedecked in his own kingly finery.

"You're wearing the buttons I made you," said Thorin, rubbing his fingers over Bilbo's belly.

"I love them." Bilbo rubbed his fingers around one of the complex little rounds of steel. "They're a perfect love-gift."

Thorin stole a kiss and tucked Bilbo's hand into his arm. "So, tell me what you're planning?"

Bilbo allowed himself to be escorted to the royal dining chamber, where Fili and Kili were already devouring their share of the meal. "I thought I'd go into town for a tailor, if we can spare a few coins and the afternoon."

As a nod to Bilbo's preferences, the breakfast table not only had smoked meats and fishes, eggs and bread, but also fresh fruit and fried mushrooms and tomatoes, and he took a hearty portion to make up for the sad fact that he still hadn't converted them to the wonders of second breakfast. Thorin usually took a bit of mushroom and tomato, but largely ignored the fruit if it wasn't apples.

"I'll miss you at afternoon court," said Thorin with a chuckle, "but I can spare you. I'll make the boys come, they need a few more diplomacy lessons."

Fili and Kili looked like they might protest, exchanging a look and a sigh between them. "Yes, Uncle," they said in chorus, voices singsong and sarcasm around their mouthfuls of bread and meat.

Bilbo chuckled and dug into his own breakfast rather more neatly. "It'll be good to see Bard again, anyway, you know I can't visit town without stopping in for tea."

"Yes, and I've got a few things to send with you for him," said Thorin. "It's good timing."

Bilbo chuckled. "Always a few steps ahead these days, my King." He stole another kiss, enjoying the disgusted noises of the nephews almost as much as the kiss itself. "I'll be happy to help."

They spent the rest of breakfast discussing the business of the kingdom, of which Bilbo had somehow become a part. He'd been given duties, first as their Hobbit Hero and then as the Royal Consort, and he'd found that so long as he was kept well-fed and given time to write, he didn't mind them so much after all. Fili and Kili had been all too happy to have someone else along to share the burden, and their goodwill had gone a long way toward softening any other resentment.

Morning court was the usual mix of dull business and asinine arguments, which Bilbo tended to settle with rather less fighting than everyone was used to. Bilbo enjoyed solving them like riddles, though, which ended up with fewer concussions and more equitable agreements in the end -- even if the courtiers were generally disappointed at the lack of brawling.

At lunch, another hearty meal since there hadn't been elevenses and there might not be afternoon tea, and Bilbo was ready to take a small stash of coin, the package for Bard, and himself out to Dale.

"I have something else for you, since you're visiting the tailor," said Thorin, waylaying Bilbo in the doorway and speaking softly.

Bilbo perked up immediately; he loved Thorin's gifts, unabashedly, even the ones that didn't work as well as hoped. "Do you, my king?"

"Yes, my consort," said Thorin, making the title into a love-name just as Bilbo had. "Something that will suit better than the toe rings, I hope."

They shared a chuckle over that failure and then Thorin unwrapped a bit of silk from his pocket to reveal a set of beautiful carved-stone buttons set in what Bilbo hoped was brass, and suspected was actually gold. The lapis lazuli were the blue of a midnight sky out on the plains, speckled with white stars and shot with gold of their own, and Thorin had carved swirls into them made Bilbo think of campfire smoke rising up while they talked.

"I love them," said Bilbo, going up on tiptoes for a very sweet kiss. "I shall have to get something made to match, thank you."

Thorin smiled, almost beaming for him, and stole another kiss. "I'd hoped you would. I love it when you wear colour and remind us that not all has to be grey and brown any longer."

Their next kiss was interrupted by a thrown, half-eaten roll. "Do that in your bedchamber, there are children present, you know," complained Fili, gesturing to Kili, who replied with a rather rude gesture of his own.

Bilbo kissed Thorin one more pointed time, and then let their laughter chase him out on his errand. The city of Dale had risen to prosperity with the help and gold out of Erebor, just as the men had given Erebor the food and support they needed to clear out the Kingdom under the Mountain. Bilbo walked out through the rebuilt siege-gates and over the bridge to the bustling city of men, feeling small there in a different way than he did among the broad-shouldered dwarves.

"I do miss the company of people the proper size," he muttered to himself, feet finding their way to the seamstress and tailor shops that had grown up in one area of the city. The buttons were tucked safely in his clothing along with certain other things, though the ring that had gotten them out of trouble so many times was now safely hidden away elsewhere.

The tailor shop was quiet when Bilbo went in, but at the chime of the bell above the door a tall, slender man ducked through the doorway to the workroom. A smile lit Bryn's face when he saw Bilbo and his straining waistcoat, and he went straight to put the kettle on the hob. "Bilbo Baggins, it's good to see you looking healthy."

Bilbo laughed. "I am indeed starting to be shaped like a proper hobbit once again." He rubbed his belly, glad that dwarves, too, appreciated a man with meat on his bones. "I'm down for some new clothing as befits a hobbit and a consort, and I have some special buttons from my husband for a waistcoat."

"Buttons from His Majesty? That is quite special," said Bryn, making up a pot of tea for them. "We'll have to do something formal for the King's love-gift to his Consort, that's serious business with dwarves."

Bilbo sighed with pleasure as the smell of tea made it to his nose. "I've been told, yes. I need some nicer things for court, anyway, now that we're starting to prosper again."

"Hm, yes. I've been seeing some better fabric around, and can acquire a few things. Perhaps a brocade?" Bryn looked thoughtful. "Show us the buttons, then, come here."

They took seats by the fire, with the tailor pouring for his customer while Bilbo brought out not only the buttons from Thorin but another set he'd found among the things brought from Hobbiton.

"I was thinking of a less formal waistcoat for these, something green to remind me of the Shire," said Bilbo, putting the brass berries on the tray beside Thorin's beautiful lapis creations.

"Oh, yes, I see," said Bryn, handing over Bilbo's cup distractedly.

Bilbo let Bryn examine them while he added honey to his tea, thinking of the giant bees that lived with Beorn. He sat back and dragged his mind to clothing and what he had and what he needed, and soon enough Bryn put the buttons back on the tray and launched into a barrage of suggestions. They had a lively discussion and emptied the pot of tea, and then Bilbo allowed his new measurements to be taken. He paid a handsome deposit for material and made an appointment to return in two days' time to pick and choose, and left feeling as though he'd done a good afternoon's work.

Bryn would put the King's money into the community and help bolster the reputation Thorin was gaining for being a generous and fair king, now that the dragon's curse of greed had lost its hold on him. With that in mind, Bilbo wandered over to the market after his visit with Bard. He picked up a few things here and there to snack on up at the palace, so that he returned lighter of pocket but with his arms full of intriguing packages.

That night, Thorin showed his appreciation for Bilbo's new figure once again, scattering beardy kisses all over his round belly. His arse got a much more intimate sort of appreciation from Thorin's agile mouth, one that left him gasping and begging before his husband filled him up with one last helping of cream for the night.

The treats made him popular with anyone sufficiently friendly with him to get a share, which meant everyone from the original company and a few others besides. The two days until his appointment passed quickly enough, and Bilbo was glad to take another purse full of coin down to spend among the vendors along with several special requests -- Fili, Kili, and Thorin were all usually too busy to make it down to Dale.

"You're in a good mood," said Bryn, putting the kettle on and happily accepting the packet of homemade scones that Bilbo had brought this time.

"Been a good week," Bilbo replied, going over to look at the bolts of cloth waiting for him, all of them in lovely colours that would suit him well. "I want them all, but I suppose I ought to choose in case my hobbity figure gets a bit rounder before I'm done."

Bryn laughed. "I can design the clothes to be let out a bit, but it might be a good idea to do one set of coordinating separates at a time."

"Oh, yes," said Bilbo, seeing the piles in a different light now. "Let's start with these blues, then." He began to feel the fabrics in the stack, and he could see that Bryn had grouped them intending to make trousers from some and shirts from others, all in shades that would go without actually matching. "I think the waistcoat with Thorin's buttons will be the pride of this set, so perhaps this?"

The fabric in Bilbo's hands was a heavy brocaded silk in blue with a gold design, which would be perfect in a small dose such as a waistcoat, but far too flashy as a coat or trousers.

"That was my thinking, as well," said Bryn, bringing the tea tray over and setting it away from the fabric. "I also got this, but that one is more suited to a King's Consort." He pulled out another brocade, this one blue-on-blue in a more modest shade than the rich indigo of the first.

"Hm, yes, though perhaps a dressing gown?" Bilbo loved a good dressing gown, and his old one hadn't survived the trip from Hobbiton as well as he'd liked.

"Oh, yes, and we can use that for the cuffs and lapels," said Bryn, perking up and pointing to the fabric Bilbo was holding.

"Yes, of course. I like all the shirt fabrics you've picked out, though I'm not sure about this one for trousers, it doesn't really go with the waistcoat." They poked through the piles and bickered over shades of blue, and in the end Bilbo made an order for the fancy waistcoat, two pairs of trousers, four shirts, the dressing gown, and a velvet coat. Bilbo took two swatches of fabric so he could buy some scarves at a booth he'd seen in town, and then they moved on to the other piles.

There was one stack in lively spring greens and yellows that made Bilbo long for Hobbiton all over again, and a third set in warm autumn colours from the deepest red to brightest gold with soft browns making up the middle of the spectrum. Bilbo decided on a bright green waistcoat for the brass berry buttons, and promised to be on the lookout for more sets of buttons for a few more waistcoats and at least one winter coat as well.

When he left, Bryn had promised to keep the other things aside for now, and had his measure to start the blue suit in all its lovely variations. Bilbo took the rest of his somewhat lightened purse out to the market and spent it on scarves and snacks, buttons and treats. He even bought a little something for his visit to Bard, and in turn was treated to some of the first fruits of Sigrid and Tilda's new garden with tea. Bilbo and his packages were welcomed home with a great deal of enthusiasm this time around.

It took a few weeks, during which he talked to Thorin about more buttons and showed him a few of the other swatches he'd been allowed to take home. Thorin made a set of amber acorns to replace the long-lost brass ones, setting them in gold despite Bilbo's protests that he needn't have anything so fine. Thorin also made a set of buttons like wind-tossed leaves to decorate the winter coat, using enamel to give the brass the bright colours of fallen leaves, each one different from the last.

Finally, Bilbo got to stop sucking in his gut and trying not to eat too much at breakfast on the day he brought home a packet of clothing along with his now-customary treats from the market. He changed for dinner that evening with a smile on his face, looking at the way the waistcoat moved with his new roundness, the way his strong calves and fine, furry feet showed below the legs of his trousers. And he gently touched the beautiful buttons that Thorin made him, giving them a last little polish before making his way down to the banquet hall.

Dwarves weren't much for formality with meals, but Bilbo hadn't wanted to wait until morning to show off his finery. He was surprised, however, when his entrance to the hall hit a lull and everyone paused to stare.

"My beautiful Consort," said Thorin, coming to escort him up to the family dais. "Those buttons look handsome on your new clothing."

"Bryn tried to craft me a suit worthy of your handiwork," replied Bilbo, loud enough to be heard. "Thank you again for the gift, my King."

Bilbo had suspicions later about who started it, but the raucous cheering that followed was as heartening as it was heartily embarrassing. Apparently, they had finally found the right thing to convince Thorin's subjects of the suitability of his chosen husband.

Bilbo smiled to himself. He might just be one chubby little hobbit to some, but here he was a King's Consort, a Burglar, a Spider-Stinger, a Lucky Number, and a friend to Dwarves and Elves alike. He'd come a long way from the Shire, and he was ready to settle into his happy ending.


End file.
